Country music is arguably more mainstream and popular than ever before, with more good ol' boys packing arenas, sweet and feisty gals embracing pop and digital album sales for the genre skyrocketing by 38% in 2012, according to Nielsen Soundscan.

So is the time really right for a change? Whether mainstream country fans are ready or not, Kacey Musgraves is bringing it to them — with some help from the king of the country A-list, Kenny Chesney. | May 15, 2013»Read Full Article

Milwaukee's Modjeska Theatre, which closed four years ago, is undergoing renovations for a planned reopening this fall as a budget cinema and venue for professional wrestling and other live events.

Volunteers have already removed enough garbage and debris from the building to fill two Dumpsters, with the next cleanup day scheduled for June 7, said Larry Widen, who's overseeing the work. | May 9, 2014»Read Full Article(8)

SURG on the Water, the SURG restaurant group’s private-event space at 102 N. Water St., is holding the first of its occasional public events on Mother's Day, in the newly remodeled dining room.

This Sunday's Mother's Day brunch buffet ($29 adults, $12, children 10 and younger) will be available from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. The restaurant is having a similar brunch on May 18, coinciding with area graduations. | May 9, 2014»Read Full Blog Post

On Fridays I'm posting my thoughts on Lou Reed's solo albums, one album at a time in chronological order of release.

After listening to several albums of Lou Reed the fifty-something cranky artiste and sonic perfectionist, it's refreshing to listen again to the much younger, scruffier Lou, still figuring things out. | May 9, 2014»Read Full Blog Post

Susan Gartell is the evil stepmother in the Milwaukee Ballet’s production of “Mirror Mirror,” which features a glamorous makeover for Snow White’s foe.

The great thing about turning a common-culture story into a new work of literature or performing art is that you get to rely on how much the audience already knows about your story — just ask the folks who created the book and musical "Wicked."

To Rise Again at a Decent Hour. By Joshua Ferris. Little, Brown and Company. 336 pages. $26.

Paul O'Rourke, the central character in Joshua Ferris' new novel "To Rise Again at a Decent Hour," is having an identity crisis. In more ways than one.

He's a Park Ave. dentist who lives and dies with the Boston Red Sox (although he frets that the team's finally winning the World Series will taint their hard-luck purity). He longs to be part of a family, but short-circuits relationships by turning his back on the idea. He's addicted to his smartphone (his "me-machine") but resists social media, refusing to create an online presence for his otherwise thriving practice. | May 9, 2014»Read Full Article

What do you get when you cross Ernest Hemingway and Jackson Pollock? Something like white-bearded Jim Stegner, the 45-year-old man's man of an artist at the heart of "The Painter," Peter Heller's entertaining new novel.

Maxime “Max” Weltzer has visited the Oconomowoc area many times over the years, accompanying his mother from Paris as she visited an old friend. He’s back, this time running his own restaurant: Le Rendez-Vous at the Point, N52-W35002 Lake Drive in Okauchee. | May 9, 2014»Read Full Blog Post(1)

The Best of Brew City is your mobile guide to going out in Milwaukee. Locate events, live music, bars and restaurants near you and in Milwaukee's most popular neighborhoods. Visit bestofbrewcity.com and download the app for iOS or Android today.

The seventh annual Greater Milwaukee Fair Trade Crawl, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, includes more than 20 stops around town, with eco-friendly food, stuff, tastings and more. You can fill out a passport at locations on the crawl and, if you visit seven spots, earn prizes. An after-party at Riverwest Public House, 815 E. Locust St., follows from 4 to 8 p.m., with live music, prizes and more. | May 9, 2014»Read Full Article